CHICAGO BLUES FESTIVAL RECAP

BLUES PHOTOGRAPHY RECAP: 2026 Chicago Blues Festival Friday June 5, Part 01 by Alan Frohlichstein

06 05 26 - The 2026 Chicago Blues Festival Friday June 5 celebrated 55 Year of Alligator Records featuring Lil’ Ed & The Blues Imperials, Ronnie Baker Brooks, Toronzo Cannon, Nick Moss and Tinsley Ellis. Other Blues greats at the Festival included Elvin Bishop & Charlie Musselwhite, CJ Chenier & the Red Hot Louisiana Band, Marquise Knox, Ra’shad the Blues Kid, Eden Brent, The Big Time Rhythm & Blues Band, Mississippi Marshall, Freddie Dixon Blues Band, The Mike Wheeler Band w

BLUES PHOTOGRAPHY RECAP: 2026 Chicago Blues Festival Opener at Ramova Theatre in Bridgeport by Alan Frohlichstein

06 04 26 - The 2026 Chicago Blues Festival kicked off at the Ramova Theatre in Bridgeport with 20 Years of the Mississippi Blues Trail Firside Chat with Mayor John Horhn, Scott Barretta, Bill McPherson, Dr Edgar Smith and Jim O’Neal Moderated by Yolonda Clay-Moore, Visit Jackson. The panel was followed by a Double Bill with John Primer, Tribute to Theresa’s Lounge and Willie Clayton. John Primer shared the stage with other Blues greats, Ronnie Baker Brooks, Billy Branch, Harm

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2026 CHICAGO BLUES FEST HEADLINERS

THURSDAY JUNE 04, 2026 THE CHICAGO BLUES FESTIVAL AT RAMOVA THEATRE

PANEL DISCUSSION 20 Years of the Mississippi Blues Trail–Fireside Chat with Mayor John Horhn, Scott Barretta, Bill Mc Pherson, Dr. Edgar Smith, and Jim O’Neal Moderated by Yolonda Clay-Moore,Visit Jackson 6-7 p.m.The Mississippi Blues Trail has been an invaluable guide to finding the people and places that shaped the music in this state and which, in turn, influenced the world. This panel will discuss its origins and impact. The experts include Jackson, Miss., Mayor John Horh

SUNDAY JUNE 07, 2026 CHICAGO BLUES FESTIVAL AT MILLENNIUM PARK

Jay Pritzker Pavilion 7:459 p.m. Taj Mahal and the Phantom Blues Band The expression “legend in his own time” may be overused, but in the case of Taj Mahal, it’s appropriate. Born Henry Saint Claire Fredericks Jr. in New York in 1942, he grew up immersed in music; among his early influences was his godfather, the famed pianist Buddy Johnson. Mahal is an internationally acclaimed roots-music polymath who has performed, educated, and inspired fellow musicians and listeners for

SATURDAY JUNE 06, 2026 CHICAGO BLUES FESTIVAL AT MILLENNIUM PARK

Jay Pritzker Pavilion 7:45-9 p.m. 75 Years of Billy Branch Billy Branch and the Sons of Blues with Kenny Nealand and Ronnie Baker Brooks As a harmonica player, singer and bandleader, Billy Branch has been an essential part of the Chicago blues community for decades. And as a devoted educator, he has been a crucial messenger of the music to audiences and students around the world. He picked up a harmonica at the age of 10 and immersed himself in the city’s blues scene during t